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Just for a moment, imagine you’re playing NBA 2K and are able to give prime Steve Nash the athletic attributes of Jalen Green. It’s a great dream sequence, one that only Robert Horry would find a way to ruin.

What about the inverse? That’s not going to happen. But what about “just a little”?

Today at Suns Media Day, Jalen mentioned a focus on his pace of play and creating for others. The attention-getter: he had regular mentoring over the offseason on this from none other than Suns Ring of Honor member and NBA Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash.

Jalen Green says he's been working on his playmaking and pace with Steve Nash this summer 👀 pic.twitter.com/2Twcc5fGCU

— Erik Ruby (@ErikRuby) September 28, 2026

What did he learn from MVP Steve?

“The pace and just being able to read the game a little bit better. Haring somebody his caliber, [a] two-time MVP, Hall of Famer, being able to sit down and actually watch a workout and critique you…that sticks with you,” Green said during Media Day availability. “Being able to hear him, how he breaks the game down, how he sees it, helps a lot.”

My main (and encouraging) takeaway is that he’s making an intentional focus of this. That is the first and often key step of any self-improvement. In the player preview article by John Voita, he connected last year’s preseason focus on mid-range shooting, which resulted in a full-season grade improvement from D- the year prior to A- per BBall Index. With a similar focus on playmaking, improvement is possible.

Thinking about this, the skeptic in me wondered if other score-first players have made a mid-career improvement in playmaking. Several relevant examples exist. DeMar DeRozan exemplifies how this transition can be effective. His first four seasons are all at or under 4.0 assists per game. Then, Raptors coach Dwane Casey put a focus on playmaking with DeMar in 2017-18, and his assists jumped to 5.2. This started a string of 10 straight seasons over four a game, peaking at 6.9 apg in the 2020-21 season. DeMar also likes to play downhill and became very effective at drawing fouls (along with an elite mid-range game). He is not a point guard, and I don’t think that label should be applied literally to Jalen either. In a similar way as DeRozan, he can be a big-time scorer, drawing attention to then make plays for others.

Let’s be realistic this season. Real playmaking is a rarer skill than dunking or three-point shooting. Some seem to be born with it, others develop it. Even in the example above, there was a transition season with slight improvement. If we see Jalen have a decrease in turnovers, his assists bump up more than +1 per game, and our eyes watching the games see a player in control of that Ferrari engine, then there is some validity to this dream for the longer term. Not an easy task, but great to know he has “MV Steve” in his corner for the journey.

As several post commenters have noted this past week, so much to watch for this season!

---

Just for a moment, imagine you’re playing NBA 2K and are able to give prime Steve Nash the athletic attributes of Jalen Green. It’s a great dream sequence, one that only Robert Horry would find a way to ruin.

What about the inverse? That’s not going to happen. But what about “just a little”?

Today at Suns Media Day, Jalen mentioned a focus on his pace of play and creating for others. The attention-getter: he had regular mentoring over the offseason on this from none other than Suns Ring of Honor member and NBA Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash.

Jalen Green says he's been working on his playmaking and pace with Steve Nash this summer 👀 pic.twitter.com/2Twcc5fGCU

— Erik Ruby (@ErikRuby) September 28, 2026

What did he learn from MVP Steve?

“The pace and just being able to read the game a little bit better. Haring somebody his caliber, [a] two-time MVP, Hall of Famer, being able to sit down and actually watch a workout and critique you…that sticks with you,” Green said during Media Day availability. “Being able to hear him, how he breaks the game down, how he sees it, helps a lot.”

My main (and encouraging) takeaway is that he’s making an intentional focus of this. That is the first and often key step of any self-improvement. In the player preview article by John Voita, he connected last year’s preseason focus on mid-range shooting, which resulted in a full-season grade improvement from D- the year prior to A- per BBall Index. With a similar focus on playmaking, improvement is possible.

Thinking about this, the skeptic in me wondered if other score-first players have made a mid-career improvement in playmaking. Several relevant examples exist. DeMar DeRozan exemplifies how this transition can be effective. His first four seasons are all at or under 4.0 assists per game. Then, Raptors coach Dwane Casey put a focus on playmaking with DeMar in 2017-18, and his assists jumped to 5.2. This started a string of 10 straight seasons over four a game, peaking at 6.9 apg in the 2020-21 season. DeMar also likes to play downhill and became very effective at drawing fouls (along with an elite mid-range game). He is not a point guard, and I don’t think that label should be applied literally to Jalen either. In a similar way as DeRozan, he can be a big-time scorer, drawing attention to then make plays for others.

Let’s be realistic this season. Real playmaking is a rarer skill than dunking or three-point shooting. Some seem to be born with it, others develop it. Even in the example above, there was a transition season with slight improvement. If we see Jalen have a decrease in turnovers, his assists bump up more than +1 per game, and our eyes watching the games see a player in control of that Ferrari engine, then there is some validity to this dream for the longer term. Not an easy task, but great to know he has “MV Steve” in his corner for the journey.

As several post commenters have noted this past week, so much to watch for this season!

---

For the first time in his brief NBA career, Lakers guard Bronny James is entering a season not being teammates with his superstar father, LeBron James. 

The difference in arriving at the Lakers training facility on Monday was apparent for the younger James.

“Feels like he’s not here,” Bronny said. “I don’t really have an opinion on that. That’s my dad, I spent 22 years almost living with him, so yeah, just another experience that I’m gonna be a part of and excited to see how it’s going to feel during the season too.”

LeBron, famously, left the Lakers as a free agent after spending eight seasons with the team – the most consecutive seasons he’s spent with a franchise since entering the league as the No. 1 pick in 2003.

Bronny said he and his father didn’t have many discussions about LeBron’s decision to sign with the 76ers.

“We’re men of very little words when it comes to talking about business, what we’re going to do and how we feel about each other,” Bronny said. “So there wasn’t really much to be honest with you.”

LeBron’s motivation to go to Philadelphia stemmed from his desire to give himself the best shot at competing for a championship.

“I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round,” the elder James said during the 76ers’ Media Day Monday.

“He’s got his own path and I got my own,” Bronny said. “So he knows that I want to make a name for myself and continue my career and keep growing as a player. And he knows that I want to focus on that. So he decides to do that, I’m happy for him and excited to see where their season goes.”

The Lakers will host the 76ers on a Christmas Day matchup in LeBron’s first game back in Southern California. 

The 76ers will also host the Lakers on March 4 in Philadelphia for the second regular season matchup between the teams.

“Excited to see him on Christmas,” Bronny said. “Excited to play against him on Christmas, so that’s gonna be good. That’s pretty much it.”

Since being the No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, Bronny has been in LeBron’s enormous shadow.

With his dad no longer on the team, he’s looking to make a name for himself entering his third season in the NBA and with the Lakers.

“For me, just the motivating factor of creating my own path and my own career makes me want to get up every day and work hard,” Bronny said. “Come in the gym and learn from guys that have been around longer than me. And it’s just something that I’ve followed my entire life. You guys know me as Bronny and my real name is LeBron, like, I’ve been doing this for however long, so I think it’s a motivating factor for me just getting up every day and trying to prove myself as Bronny instead of LeBron.”

Bronny and LeBron did play each other in golf before joining their respective teams.

The result?

“I won,” Bronny said. “I won. He’s pretty pissed about it.”

For the first time in his brief NBA career, Lakers guard Bronny James is entering a season not being teammates with his superstar father, LeBron James. 

The difference in arriving at the Lakers training facility on Monday was apparent for the younger James.

“Feels like he’s not here,” Bronny said. “I don’t really have an opinion on that. That’s my dad, I spent 22 years almost living with him, so yeah, just another experience that I’m gonna be a part of and excited to see how it’s going to feel during the season too.”

LeBron, famously, left the Lakers as a free agent after spending eight seasons with the team – the most consecutive seasons he’s spent with a franchise since entering the league as the No. 1 pick in 2003.

Bronny said he and his father didn’t have many discussions about LeBron’s decision to sign with the 76ers.

“We’re men of very little words when it comes to talking about business, what we’re going to do and how we feel about each other,” Bronny said. “So there wasn’t really much to be honest with you.”

LeBron’s motivation to go to Philadelphia stemmed from his desire to give himself the best shot at competing for a championship.

“I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round,” the elder James said during the 76ers’ Media Day Monday.

“He’s got his own path and I got my own,” Bronny said. “So he knows that I want to make a name for myself and continue my career and keep growing as a player. And he knows that I want to focus on that. So he decides to do that, I’m happy for him and excited to see where their season goes.”

The Lakers will host the 76ers on a Christmas Day matchup in LeBron’s first game back in Southern California. 

The 76ers will also host the Lakers on March 4 in Philadelphia for the second regular season matchup between the teams.

“Excited to see him on Christmas,” Bronny said. “Excited to play against him on Christmas, so that’s gonna be good. That’s pretty much it.”

Since being the No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, Bronny has been in LeBron’s enormous shadow.

With his dad no longer on the team, he’s looking to make a name for himself entering his third season in the NBA and with the Lakers.

“For me, just the motivating factor of creating my own path and my own career makes me want to get up every day and work hard,” Bronny said. “Come in the gym and learn from guys that have been around longer than me. And it’s just something that I’ve followed my entire life. You guys know me as Bronny and my real name is LeBron, like, I’ve been doing this for however long, so I think it’s a motivating factor for me just getting up every day and trying to prove myself as Bronny instead of LeBron.”

Bronny and LeBron did play each other in golf before joining their respective teams.

The result?

“I won,” Bronny said. “I won. He’s pretty pissed about it.”

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers are a franchise adorned in the bright lights, celebrities and stars. And with that comes pressure.

Plenty of players have come and gone with expectations of making an impact and results that left them estranged from the fanbase. This season, the Lakers are welcoming in a host of new additions, led by the likes of Walker Kessler, Quentin Grimes and Sandro Mamukelashvili.

Kessler, the biggest addition of them all, doesn’t look at the spotlight as added pressure, though.

“I think it’s more of an opportunity,” he said at Media Day on Monday. “To play for an historic franchise, to play for history like this, I don’t really feel pressure. I more so just feel grateful. Grateful for this opportunity and grateful to play for this franchise.”

If the proverbial pressure were on anyone the most, it’d be Kessler, for whom the Lakers traded two first-round picks to the Utah Jazz and are paying upwards of $130 million over the next four years. He comes in as the cornerstone big man alongside Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves. Dončić expressed his desire to play with Kessler on Monday as well.

Kessler comes from one of the smallest markets in the NBA. And from a team that, for the most part, wasn’t focused all that much on winning while he was there, which only amplifies the transition. Not only will more eyes be on him, they’ll also be quicker to scrutinize.

“I’m a big believer in ‘out of sight, out of mind,’” Kessler said. “Obviously [the] fanbase is incredible … but not to get too high when they sing (my) praises. Not to get too low when they’re upset about certain performances. So, for me, it’s best to just keep my nose to the grindstone and just keep working.”

Kessler’s frontcourt mate, Mamukelashvili, is also keenly aware of the grand stage he’s playing on now. Growing up in the country of Georgia, he recalls rarely being able to watch NBA games as a kid. Whenever he could catch one, it was always the Lakers.

Mamukelashvili, like Kessler and Grimes, signed a four-year deal this offseason. The NBA, for a subset of players, is mostly about making it to the next contract. The popular understanding is that with a longer-term deal comes stability, especially for a player like Mamukelashvili, who came into the league on a two-way contract.

He doesn’t agree with that.

“You can’t get comfortable,” he said. “I really mean it. I think the moment you get comfortable in this league is the moment you’re going to find yourself declining. To me, even though I signed a four-year deal, doesn’t mean (anything). I feel like I got to prove every game, every practice, every year.

“Of course it’s good to have years, but I just want to be the guy who doesn’t settle. I want to achieve something in my career. I want to win. I want to be a part of something great. So, to do that, you’ve got to always be on your toes. You got to always be aware of the situation you’re in. I think that’s what got me here.”

Grimes also signed a four-year deal, but unlike the two big men, has experience in a market the size of Los Angeles. He was drafted by the New York Knicks and played his last two seasons in Philadelphia. He admits that, despite the Lakers being a much bigger brand globally than the two franchises, Los Angeles is just a different beach.

“You’ve got to not worry about if you get good praise, bad praise,” Grimes said. “At the end of the day, I’m here to play basketball and I’m here to handle business every single day. You can’t get caught up in external noise. You’ve got our team — that’s the only noise we’re really worried about. Just keep the main thing the main thing and everything will be alright.”

Expectations can be tempered anytime. Anyone who plays for the Lakers is expected to win. Whether or not a player is able to handle the pressure is an entirely different thing. Talking the talk and walking the walk are different challenges.

For now, the newest Lakers look ready to step up to it.

You can follow Connor on Twitter at @cmorenoNBA.

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Cavaliers were hoping to land LeBron James in free agency after he announced he was leaving the Los Angeles Lakers last July. After almost a month of waiting around, he ended up choosing to end his career with the Philadelphia 76ers. A decision that he says won’t result in him leaving his family just to end up getting bounced in the second round — which is pretty optimistic since the Sixers haven’t advanced out of the second round since 2001.

The only people seemingly aware of what James was thinking during the free agency process were the players he was communicating with. But from the sound of things, not even those on the short list of his final destination knew much of what LeBron was thinking.

“I knew probably as much as you did,” Mitchell said when asked about his thoughts on James signing with Philadelphia.

Mitchell also admitted that he thought LeBron was going to come back and end his career where it started.

“I think for a lot of reasons it made sense (for him to sign with Cleveland),” Mitchell said. “I didn’t think Philly. I thought if he didn’t come here, he’d be in Golden State.”

Now James is in Philadelphia playing for one of the handful of teams that stand in the way of the Cavs and their goal of reaching the NBA Finals. Former Cavs general manager Mike Gansey drastically transformed Philadelphia’s roster in a few short weeks, placing them as one of the favorites to win the conference.

The Cavs won’t have to wait long to see how they stack up against the Sixers as they open their season in Philadelphia in under a month.

“For us, it’s about moving forward and not really looking back at that,” Mitchell said. “They’re an opponent. The’ve gotten stronger. Not just him, but they have Jalen Brown, obviously [Tyrese] Maxey, V.J. [Edgecomb], [Joel] Embiid, (and) Anfernee Simons coming off the bench. They got a lot of talent over ther. They’ll be a fierce competitor so we’re excited.”

SAN FRANCISCO — There were two things Steve Kerr omitted from his usual preseason address to the Golden State Warriors to set the tone for the season ahead.

For one, there will be no more special treatment for Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.

“Our team was built in such a way that I literally told everybody, all of you guys have to take care of the ball, they’re allowed to turn it over six times,” Kerr said. “We’ve got to tighten things up.”

The crackdown on playing cleaner, crisper basketball is part of a broader makeover that was desperately needed after finishing fourth from the bottom in giveaways last season. 

It’s also part of what Kerr described as a way to “reimagine” Warriors basketball heading into his 14th season with an aging roster that’s been lapped by teams both younger and better.

That goes as far as their own expectations for this season and however many Curry has left with Golden State after taking a discount to sign a two-year extension.

For the first time in a while, the Warriors didn’t spend media day talking about championships.

The word of the day was “process.”

“Last year I think I told the team in our first meeting, ‘we’re trying to win the championship,’” Kerr said. “What’s our goal? They all said, ‘championship.’ I think I even told them, we want a home court advantage in the playoffs.”

This season, after contemplating walking away, “I am 100% locked in on the process on how we’re teaching every single day,” Kerr continued. “I firmly believe that if we do that from the beginning without even mentioning anything about expectations, then we’re going to have a good season, and that’s how I’m approaching things.”

After watching Giannis Antetokounmpo take his talents to South Beach, losing out on Kawhi Leonard to Toronto and getting snubbed by LeBron James for the 76ers, maybe the Warriors are just being realistic. According to DraftKings, there are 14 teams with better NBA title odds.

They’re certainly not speaking with the swagger that we’ve come to know from the dynasty that dominated the league for the better part of a decade, culminating in 2022 with its fourth title.

Kerr touted Golden State’s “under the radar” signings — Brandon Williams, Georges Niang —  as “guys who can really play and who have helped winning teams.” General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. had his tail between his legs after every other pursuit came up short.

He wasn’t able to give a full-throated endorsement of the roster without couching it first.

“First and foremost,” he said, “we’re humbly optimistic about the prospect for this team.”

Teams that compete for championships don’t tend to be humble.

The Warriors don’t really have any other choice, not when their top two wings — Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody — won’t be ready until at least midway through the season. They got another reminder of the challenge that lays ahead when Dunleavy’s phone rang the night before.

It was Kristaps Porzingis, calling to tell him his “health issues” had sprung up again. Their starting center won’t join them in Hawaii for training camp and is out indefinitely.

Curry, bless his soul, signed up to run it back, anyway. He could have used his leverage and refused to sign an extension unless the Warriors upgraded the roster around him, a la other superstars. Instead, he never even threatened to leave and even took less money than the Warriors offered him — about $10 million this season — to give them more flexibility.

So far, all that’s resulted in is a hit to Curry’s bank account.

“Without knowing the answers to the test, it was my best way to study for it, if that makes sense,” Curry said. “This is home. This is what we’ve built. This is a community that I’ve played in front of my entire career, and being able to finish the story the right way is a big part of I think what I can control.”

Curry was about the only one who didn’t seem to be infected by the dour mood outside the building. He was so flabbergasted when one reporter said “nobody” expected them to make the playoffs, let alone compete for a championship, that all he could muster was, “Damn!”

“That’s how bad it is?” Curry questioned of the outside expectations.

Kerr, on the other hand, seemed to be looking forward to getting to play the underdog for once.

“I don’t mind the fact that everyone is picking us to miss the playoffs. You know, that’s not a bad spot to be in as a team, as a coach,” he said, returning to a familiar theme. “For me what it means is we get to focus on the process.”

Even before the season-ending injuries to Butler and Moody, the Warriors weren’t living up to their championship aspirations. When Butler went down on Jan. 19, they were 25-19, eighth in the Western Conference. 

Absent any significant personnel changes from last season — besides intense defensive assistant Frank Vogel, whose addition Kerr described as a “coup” — the Warriors seem to be content with re-evaluating how they use the players in the building.

“We lost too many close games. We gave too many games away in the margins,” Kerr said. “So the vision for this year is to clean that stuff up and build some momentum and then we get those guys back.”

Green is being asked to reimagine his role, too. He’s going to spend more time on the perimeter, and Kerr wants him to shoot more of the open looks he gets from 3. “Shooting, crashing, you know, spreading the floor for other people, dribble hand-off stuff,” Kerr said.

And turn the ball over less.

Green pushed back on the notion that championship expectations precedes championships.

“I hate to be cliche, but in 2022 nobody walked into that season like, ‘Hey, here’s the beginning of a championship year.’ Our process was great, which then allowed us to grow over the season and become a championship team.”

There’s that word again.

Process. It may be the only thing the Warriors will be able to control this season.

“Put together a great process and then you get to the end,” Green said, “and you let the cards fall where they may.”

SAN FRANCISCO — There were two things Steve Kerr omitted from his usual preseason address to the Golden State Warriors to set the tone for the season ahead.

For one, there will be no more special treatment for Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.

“Our team was built in such a way that I literally told everybody, all of you guys have to take care of the ball, they’re allowed to turn it over six times,” Kerr said. “We’ve got to tighten things up.”

The crackdown on playing cleaner, crisper basketball is part of a broader makeover that was desperately needed after finishing fourth from the bottom in giveaways last season. 

It’s also part of what Kerr described as a way to “reimagine” Warriors basketball heading into his 14th season with an aging roster that’s been lapped by teams both younger and better.

That goes as far as their own expectations for this season and however many Curry has left with Golden State after taking a discount to sign a two-year extension.

For the first time in a while, the Warriors didn’t spend media day talking about championships.

The word of the day was “process.”

“Last year I think I told the team in our first meeting, ‘we’re trying to win the championship,’” Kerr said. “What’s our goal? They all said, ‘championship.’ I think I even told them, we want a home court advantage in the playoffs.”

This season, after contemplating walking away, “I am 100% locked in on the process on how we’re teaching every single day,” Kerr continued. “I firmly believe that if we do that from the beginning without even mentioning anything about expectations, then we’re going to have a good season, and that’s how I’m approaching things.”

After watching Giannis Antetokounmpo take his talents to South Beach, losing out on Kawhi Leonard to Toronto and getting snubbed by LeBron James for the 76ers, maybe the Warriors are just being realistic. According to DraftKings, there are 14 teams with better NBA title odds.

They’re certainly not speaking with the swagger that we’ve come to know from the dynasty that dominated the league for the better part of a decade, culminating in 2022 with its fourth title.

Kerr touted Golden State’s “under the radar” signings — Brandon Williams, Georges Niang —  as “guys who can really play and who have helped winning teams.” General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. had his tail between his legs after every other pursuit came up short.

He wasn’t able to give a full-throated endorsement of the roster without couching it first.

“First and foremost,” he said, “we’re humbly optimistic about the prospect for this team.”

Teams that compete for championships don’t tend to be humble.

The Warriors don’t really have any other choice, not when their top two wings — Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody — won’t be ready until at least midway through the season. They got another reminder of the challenge that lays ahead when Dunleavy’s phone rang the night before.

It was Kristaps Porzingis, calling to tell him his “health issues” had sprung up again. Their starting center won’t join them in Hawaii for training camp and is out indefinitely.

Curry, bless his soul, signed up to run it back, anyway. He could have used his leverage and refused to sign an extension unless the Warriors upgraded the roster around him, a la other superstars. Instead, he never even threatened to leave and even took less money than the Warriors offered him — about $10 million this season — to give them more flexibility.

So far, all that’s resulted in is a hit to Curry’s bank account.

“Without knowing the answers to the test, it was my best way to study for it, if that makes sense,” Curry said. “This is home. This is what we’ve built. This is a community that I’ve played in front of my entire career, and being able to finish the story the right way is a big part of I think what I can control.”

Curry was about the only one who didn’t seem to be infected by the dour mood outside the building. He was so flabbergasted when one reporter said “nobody” expected them to make the playoffs, let alone compete for a championship, that all he could muster was, “Damn!”

“That’s how bad it is?” Curry questioned of the outside expectations.

Kerr, on the other hand, seemed to be looking forward to getting to play the underdog for once.

“I don’t mind the fact that everyone is picking us to miss the playoffs. You know, that’s not a bad spot to be in as a team, as a coach,” he said, returning to a familiar theme. “For me what it means is we get to focus on the process.”

Even before the season-ending injuries to Butler and Moody, the Warriors weren’t living up to their championship aspirations. When Butler went down on Jan. 19, they were 25-19, eighth in the Western Conference. 

Absent any significant personnel changes from last season — besides intense defensive assistant Frank Vogel, whose addition Kerr described as a “coup” — the Warriors seem to be content with re-evaluating how they use the players in the building.

“We lost too many close games. We gave too many games away in the margins,” Kerr said. “So the vision for this year is to clean that stuff up and build some momentum and then we get those guys back.”

Green is being asked to reimagine his role, too. He’s going to spend more time on the perimeter, and Kerr wants him to shoot more of the open looks he gets from 3. “Shooting, crashing, you know, spreading the floor for other people, dribble hand-off stuff,” Kerr said.

And turn the ball over less.

Green pushed back on the notion that championship expectations precedes championships.

“I hate to be cliche, but in 2022 nobody walked into that season like, ‘Hey, here’s the beginning of a championship year.’ Our process was great, which then allowed us to grow over the season and become a championship team.”

There’s that word again.

Process. It may be the only thing the Warriors will be able to control this season.

“Put together a great process and then you get to the end,” Green said, “and you let the cards fall where they may.”